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Sedimentation
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This article is about the scientific phenomenon of sedimentation. For sedimentation in the
treatment of water and wastewater, see Sedimentation (water treatment).
Sedimentation is the tendency for particles in suspension to settle out of the fluid in which they
are entrained, and come to rest against a barrier. This is due to their motion through the fluid in
response to the forces acting on them: these forces can be due to gravity, centrifugal
acceleration or electromagnetism. In geology sedimentation is often used as the polar opposite
of erosion, i.e., the terminal end of sediment transport. In that sense it includes the termination
of transport by saltation or true bedload transport. Settling is the falling of suspended particles
through the liquid, whereas sedimentation is the termination of the settling process.
Sedimentation may pertain to objects of various sizes, ranging from large rocks in flowing water
to suspensions of dust and pollen particles to cellular suspensions to solutions of
single moleculessuch as proteins and peptides. Even small molecules such as aspirin can be
sedimented, although it can be difficult to apply a sufficiently strong force to produce significant
sedimentation.
The term is typically used in geology, to describe the deposition of sediment which results in the
formation of sedimentary rock, and in various chemical and environmental fields to describe the
motions of often-smaller particles and molecules. Process is also used in biotech industry to
separate out cells from the culture media.
Contents
[hide]

1 Experiments
2 Geology
3 Chemistry
4 Biology
5 See also
6 Notes

[edit]Experiments
In a sedimentation experiment called tripothsis, the applied force accelerates the particles to
a terminal velocity

at which the applied force is exactly canceled by an opposing drag

force. For small enough particles (low Reynolds number), the drag force varies linearly with
the terminal velocity, i.e.,

(Stokes flow) where f depends only on the

properties of the particle and the surrounding fluid. Similarly, the applied force generally varies
linearly with some coupling constant (denoted here as q) that depends only on the properties of
the particle,
coefficient

. Hence, it is generally possible to define a sedimentation

that depends only on the properties of the particle and the surrounding

fluid. Thus, measurings can reveal underlying properties of the particle.

In many cases, the motion of the particles is blocked by a hard boundary; the resulting
accumulation of particles at the boundary is called a sediment. The concentration of particles at
the boundary is opposed by the diffusion of the particles.
The sedimentation of particles under gravity is described by the MasonWeaver equation, which
has a simple exact solution. The sedimentation coefficient s in this case equals
where

is the buoyant mass.

The sedimentation of particles under the centrifugal force is described by the Lamm equation,
which likewise has an exact solution. The sedimentation coefficient s also equals
where

is the buoyant mass. However, the Lamm equation differs from the MasonWeaver

equation because the centrifugal force depends on radius from the origin of rotation, whereas
gravity is presumed constant. The Lamm equation also has extra terms, since it pertains

to sector-shaped cells, whereas the MasonWeaver equation pertains to box-shaped cells (i.e.,
cells whose walls are aligned with the three Cartesian axes).
Particles with a charge or dipole moment can be sedimented by an electric field or electric field
gradient, respectively. These processes are called electrophoresis and dielectrophoresis,
respectively. For electrophoresis, the sedimentation coefficient corresponds to the particle
charge divided by its drag (the electrophoretic mobility). Similarly, for dielectrophoresis, the
sedimentation coefficient equals the particle's electric dipole moment divided by its drag.
Classification of sedimentation:[citation needed]

Type 1 sedimentation is characterized by particles that settle

discretely at a constant settling velocity. They settle as individual
particles and do not flocculate or stick to other during settling.
Example: sand and grit material

Type 2 sedimentation is characterized by particles that flocculate

during sedimentation and because of this their size is constantly
changing and therefore their settling velocity is changing.
Example: alum or iron coagulation

Type 3 sedimentation is also known as zone sedimentation. In

this process the particles are at a high concentration (greater
than 1000 mg/L) such that the particles tend to settle as a mass
and a distinct clear zone and sludge zone are present. Zone
settling occurs in lime-softening, sedimentation, active sludge
sedimentation and sludge thickeners.

[edit]Geology

Siltation

In geology, sedimentation is the deposition of particles carried by a fluid flow.

For suspended load, this can be expressed mathematically by the Exner equation, and results
in the formation of depositional landforms and the rocks that constitute sedimentary record. An
undesired increased transport and sedimentation of suspended material is called siltation, and it
is a major source of pollution in waterways in some parts of the world.[1][2] Climate changealso
affects siltation rates.[3]
[edit]Chemistry
In chemistry, sedimentation has been used to measure the size of large molecules
(macromolecule), where the force of gravity is augmented withcentrifugal force in a centrifuge.
[edit]Biology
In biology, the sedimentation of organisms is a critical issue for planktonic organisms, as sinking
under gravity moves them away from the surface, where sunlight provides energy.[4]
[edit]See

also

Coagulation (disambiguation)

Flocculation

[edit]Notes
1. ^ "Siltation & Sedimentation". blackwarriorriver.org. Retrieved
2009-11-16.
2. ^ "Siltation killed fish at Batang Rajang - Digest on Malaysian
News". malaysiadigest.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2009-11-16.
3. ^ U.D. Kulkarni, et al. "The International Journal of Climate
Change: Impacts and Responses Rate of Siltation in Wular Lake,
(Jammu and Kashmir, India) with Special Emphasis on its Climate
& Tectonics". The International Journal of Climate Change: Impacts
and Responses. Retrieved 2009-11-16.
4. ^ Dusenbery, David B. (2009). Living at Micro Scale, Chapter 12.
Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. ISBN 978-0-67403116-6.

[hide]

Geologic Principles & Processses

Principle of original horizontality

Law of superposition

Principle of lateral continuity

Stratigraphic Principles
Principle of cross-cutting relationships

Principle of faunal succession

Principle of inclusions and components

Walther's law

Intrusive

Extrusive

Exfoliation

Weathering
Petrologic Principles
Pedogenesis

Diagenesis

Compaction

Metamorphism

Plate tectonics

Salt tectonics

Tectonic uplift
Geomorphologic Processes
Subsidence

Marine transgression

Marine regression

Fluvial processes

Aeolian processes
Sediment transport
Glacial processes

Mass wasting processes

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This page was last modified on 3 October 2012 at 12:29.

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